City-wise lists for agency offices
A Mumbai office closes for Ganesh Chaturthi, a Kolkata office for Durga Puja, a Chennai office for Pongal and a Bengaluru office for Kannada Rajyotsava. Set up each office as a branch in ZeniaHR and apply its regional holidays there, with national holidays applying to all. Staff see only their own office's list in My Self-Service and the app. Before you open an office in a new state, confirm its festival and Shops and Establishments holiday obligations.
Social media and live campaign duty on festivals
Brands post on Diwali, Independence Day, Holi and Eid, and the social team has to publish, watch comments and respond. Plan a small duty roster for each festival a month ahead: one social media manager and one approver on call per brand group, rotated so the same people do not work every festival. Posts can be scheduled in advance in your publishing tool; what needs a person is monitoring and replies. Those on duty earn comp-off for the holiday, credited with an expiry date.
Optional holidays for a mixed team
Agency teams come from every part of India, so a short fixed list plus optional picks works well. Offer festivals such as Onam, Bakrid, Christmas Eve, Guru Nanak Jayanti and Chhath Puja as optional picks, allowing each person, say, three a year. A picks report per holiday shows account leads who will be away in a busy festive week, before a client asks for a same-day change and finds half the team on leave.
Shoots and client closures around holidays
Production often books shoots on holidays because studios and locations are free and clients are away. If a shoot falls on a public holiday that applies to the crew, the crew is owed comp-off, or holiday pay at no less than twice the ordinary rate if the overtime policy pays it. When a big client shuts its office for a week around Diwali, the account team can take its comp-off then. Share the festive shoot calendar and the holiday duty roster on the Company Wall with the teams concerned.
How to set it up in ZeniaHR
- Create each office as a branch and apply regional holidays, such as Ganesh Chaturthi for Mumbai, to that branch only.
- Add optional festivals with a yearly pick limit and share the list on the Company Wall.
- Plan a festival duty roster for social and live campaign teams a month ahead, rotating names each year.
- Credit comp-off for holiday duty with an expiry date, or pay it through the overtime policy's holiday multiplier.
- Review the optional holiday picks report before each festive production week.
Read more about holiday calendars in ZeniaHR.
Roles this applies to
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Do advertising agency employees work on festivals?
Some do, mostly social media, live campaign and production staff, because brands post and campaigns go live on festival days. Agencies usually plan a small rotated duty roster and give comp-off or holiday pay to those on duty. Everyone else follows their own office's holiday list.
How do agencies with offices in several cities manage holidays?
They keep national holidays common to all offices and add each state's regional holidays per office, such as Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai or Durga Puja in Kolkata. In ZeniaHR, each office is a branch, and staff see only their own branch's list in My Self-Service and on the app.
How many optional holidays should an agency offer?
It is a policy choice. A common pattern is a compact fixed list, with two or three festivals each person chooses from a longer list, which suits a team drawn from different states and faiths. Set the pick limit once a year and check the picks report before busy weeks so account cover is not left to chance.